'Fine!' The insurgent said, clearly getting closer. I didn't look up to watch his approach. I was fearful that he would suspect my ruse and shoot us both where we were, me down on my haunches and Justin half sitting up and in my arms. Out of the corner of my eye I could see our discarded cammies, could he? The sun was blocked as the man came in to get a closer look. 'Where's he shot? I don’t see any blood.'
'Funny thing.' I said as I launched up from my kneeling position. My K-Bar slid effortlessly into his Adam's apple. The angle of the blade pierced his jugular and went up and through his tongue. There was some small resistance as it burst through his upper palate and then into his brain. A look of shock and betrayal was lined on the man's features as I helped him down much as I had Justin only moments earlier. The man had expired long before I was able to pull my blade out. A strong suction was followed by an audible pop. Only Justin's retching disturbed the quiet morning.
'You going to be alright?' I asked Justin, looking around to see if anyone had witnessed this event. I wiped my blade on the man's jacket. A glint off his chest brought my attention to center, a tickle in my head fused into thought. A tiny vial no bigger than a push tack was attached to a thin chain that hung from the man's neck. A pin- prick amount of red fluid swam lazily within. 'What do you think that is?' I asked Justin. He still appeared to be varying between a yellow and greenish hue.
'Please tell me you're not into trophies, Dad?'
Justin couldn't bring himself to look at the dead man. Killing the dead is one thing. We're just finishing what nature had intended all along. Killing a living breathing man, that was an unnatural act. It violated all that should be sacred. I wouldn't lose much sleep, if any, over this piece of shit. He had chosen his fate the moment he hooked up with Eliza. Who in their right mind aligns with the living dead and the undead and doesn't expect a bad ending? That's just piss poor planning on his part if you ask me.
I ripped the chain off the guy and held it in front of Justin's eyes. Probably should have wiped some of the guy's blood off first though. The quickly thickening blood hung in long dangles before releasing from the chain links and striking softly into the not so pristine snow. Justin was rapidly going for a complete disgorging.
'Blood.' Justin said breathlessly as he heaved what little remained inside of him.
I looked to his puddle of vomit, alarmed. Blood is never a good thing to discard. I was relieved when I didn’t see any. I looked at him questioningly.
'Blood, it looks like blood.' He said pointing weakly to the vial in my hand.
'I think you’re right.' I said looking more closely at it.
'Why?' He asked.
'I think we need six more.'
Justin lurched a little with the thought of killing six more 'live' men. 'Why?' He asked even more weakly.
'I think I'm holding zombie repellant here.'
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE - JOURNAL ENTRY 15 - 
I removed the charm from the chain and placed it in my pocket. 'You up for this?' I asked Justin.
He gave a thumbs-up and a greasy smile. It wasn't the 'Ooh Rah' war cry of the Marines but it was going to have to do.
'Dad, you sure that thing is going to work?' Justin asked alluding to my new favorite piece of jewelry. Mind you it's not that I have other jewelry that I'm fond of, it's just that this piece could potentially save my family's collective asses. 'I don't think I've got enough energy left to mask you again.'
Now he had me thinking. What if this thing was useless, no more than a trinket fished out of a gumball machine. Death by rended flesh was not my ideal way to go. I was really looking for a massive coronary during mind blowing sex as my opt out. 'Maybe you're right. Let's do a test. Let's make this quick though, time is definitely getting short.'
Some of the slower ambling zombies were no more than 100 feet ahead of us. I was figuring better to let one of the deaders realize I was food than a pack of speeders. We approached some of the zombies who looked like they had gone through in an industrial washing machine full of glass. They were torn to shreds, shards of skin hanging askew. Occasionally birds would swoop down and feast on the proffered meat. To say it was disgusting would be like saying Henry's farts smelled like sweet ambrosia. I was willfully getting as close to them as I could; the repulsion I felt nearly rivaled the fear. My blood was blistering through my veins. The flight mechanism in me was in hyper drive. I could just turn around and…do what? The zombies were heading in the direction I needed to be in. Whether I blended in or fought my way through I had to get to where they were going before they got there, and I had to do it fast. The speeders up front were still meeting some resistance but it wasn't the resistance of a dug in enemy, it was the sporadic firing of an opponent during controlled retreat. The Marines were giving up territory in an attempt to save lives.
My concern for my family spurred me on. Justin fought to keep up, his reserves nearly depleted from his magic act. I was within 15 feet of the first zombie when he turned to look at me. One eye had completely rolled back up and into its head, his nose had been stripped clean of all edible pieces as had half his lip. The exposed brown teeth were forever frozen in a sinister looking stare.
'Shithead, should have used a whitening agent in your toothpaste.' It was my way of dealing with the horror within. 'I bet you've got the breath to match that smile.'
The zombie had stopped its forward momentum to get a better look at us with its one good eye. His tongue flapped independent of any conscious thought. A seagull took that opportune time to swoop in and latch onto the lolling appendage. I nearly vomited when the bird used every ounce of its wing strength to rip the tongue from the zombie’s mouth. The zombie paid it no attention whatsoever as his tongue first stretched to unimaginable lengths and then like an over taut rubber band just snapped free. Viscous black liquid oozed forth from the wound. The zombie smacked its lips around the new au jus.
'Oh Dad, what the fuck?' Justin cried.
My sentiments exactly, but if I had voiced my thoughts it would not have been the only thing to spew forth and with the human enemy behind us I could not give them any reason to suspect that we weren't part of their group.
'What do we do if he tries to eat you?' Justin asked realizing we couldn't kill it without exposing ourselves to some serious issues, flying lead being among them.
'Well he's a deader and he looks like he's been through the ringer. We should be able to outpace him without drawing too much attention.' I was however intentionally leaving out the thousand or so zombies to our forefront.
The zombie wavered a few more seconds as we got closer, like he was deciding if we were tasty enough to eat.
'Come on, come on.' I said softly. 'Make up your mind, it's not like you're doing trigonometry.' Then I laughed.
'Dad, is this really a laugh worthy moment?'
'It is if you're wondering can a zombie do trig, when even I can't.'
'Real hilarious Dad.'
'You had to be there.'
The zombie made one whistle snort sound through his completely open sinus passage and turned. I would swear that he looked a little bummed that we weren't on the menu but it's difficult to tell these things on a person who has had most of their facial tissues destroyed.
'I think this vial is our golden ticket out of here, Justin.' I said excitedly.
'How are you planning on getting more?' Justin asked. We knew how I had to get it. The question was HOW was I going to get it.
I started to slow up a bit, letting the zombies get ahead and the human attackers from the rear catch up. The first opportunity presented itself almost immediately and it almost ended up being our last. I was thankful that the usurpers did not appear to have prior military training. They were basically broken up into independent units. There were no fire teams or squads, just loose bands of traitors, traitors to all of mankind. The zombies were mortal enemies, of that there was no doubt, but they did not choose their fate. These humans were tantamount to a tic latched onto a parasite. They were living off of a scourge. I would be glad to rid the world of as many of them as I could.
